Water: A Natural Weight Loss Tool: Part II
Drinking water is essential to helping your body run efficiently. The body will not function properly and cannot metabolize stored fat efficiently without enough water. The more you weigh, the more water you need to drink in a day. To learn more about water and weight loss, check out Part 1 of this blog series.
Benefits of Drinking Water
Drinking water has many benefits. Water helps maintain proper muscle tone by giving muscles their natural ability to contract and preventing dehydration. It also helps to prevent the sagging skin that follows weight loss – shrinking skin cells are buoyed by water, which plumps the skin and leaves it clean, healthy, and resilient.
In addition, water helps rid the body of waste. During weight loss, the body has much more waste to eliminate as all metabolized fat must be shed. Adequate water helps to flush out waste. When the body gets too little water, it will siphon what it needs from other sources. The colon is one of its primary sources. Result? Constipation. When a person drinks enough water, normal bowel function usually returns.
When the body gets the proper amount of water it needs to function optimally, the fluids in the body are better balanced. Plus:
Fluid retention is alleviated as stored water is released.
More fat is used as fuel because the liver is free to metabolize stored fat.
Natural thirst returns.
Hunger and cravings are reduced.
Warm or Cold?
Most Americans prefer their water to be cold, often with ice. Some studies show that cold water empties from the stomach faster and is therefore absorbed faster in the body. On the other hand, warm or room temperature water helps loosen up mucus when we are sick and improves digestion. What do you prefer, warm or cold?
Drink Up,
Jenny